hallie zipped up her bag, slipping her shoes on before she walked out of her room. she strolled into the kitchen, leaning on the counter.

"we're about to leave," hallie said. her mom shut the fridge and turned to look at her eighteen year old daughter.

"okay, be careful. we'll be there tuesday morning." her mom said. she kissed her daughters cheek before she continued cooking. hallie grabbed her wallet off the counter before she walked out the door. before she did, she yelled an 'i love you' to her mom.

hallie walked outside, being greeted by walker honking loudly. she laughed and opened the passenger door, throwing her bags in behind her.

"i could've just walked to your house." she said, shutting the door.

"i have to be a gentleman this weekend." he replied, kissing her cheek.

"only this weekend??" she teased. walker laughed and put his truck in reverse.

"yeah. i'm never gonna be a gentleman except on anniversaries."

tomorrow marks three years since hallie and walker started dating. they decided to go down to the lake house a few days early just by themselves.

walked reached over and rested his hand on hallie's leg. they drove peacefully, the soft sound of music playing through the speakers. after the lengthy ride, walker parked the car in the driveway. hallie flew out of her seat and through the doors of the house.

"it's just how i remember it!" she yelled, walking around. walker followed in after a moment, carrying hallie's bags. he set them down inside then went back out for his own bags. he checked a certain pocket in it, sighing of relief when the black box was still there.

**

"hey, ruby." walker said, closing the door behind hallie's mom's room. she turned around and looked at him.

"hey, hun, what's up?" she asked, putting her laundry down. walker stood there nervously, fiddling with his fingers.

"come sit." she offered, patting the spot next to her. walker sat down, not making eye contact with her. "do you wanna tell me what's wrong?"

"nothing's wrong- it's just-" walker sighed, standing back up. he dug the small box out of his pocket and set it on the bed next to her.

"i wanna ask hallie to marry me."

**

walker carried his bags inside, setting them down next to hallie's. he shut the door behind him, looking around for his girlfriend.

"hal? where did you go?" he yelled throughout the house. a loud thud sounded upstairs, and walker couldn't help but laugh. he walked up the stairs, opening the door to his room. he found hallie sat at his desk, holding a familiar notebook.  walker smiled sweetly, sitting down on his bed.

"remind me why we left this here?" he asked, rolling the chair closer to him. hallie crossed her legs, opening the book in her lap.

"so we have something to look forward to, coming here. something that will remind us of us no matter what." hallie said, flipping through the pages of the book. walker kissed her cheek, standing up off of his bed.

"you're so right, honey." he said. "are you hungry?"

"very." she stood up, shutting the notebook and placing it delicately in its specific spot. she followed walker downstairs and into the kitchen. she sat on the counter, kicking her legs against the cabinet. walker looked through the fridge for any food.

"we haven't been here for a year, i don't think there's gonna be anything here." hallie said, giggling. walker frowned, walking back to her. he leaned into her, resting his head on her shoulder.

"we can go somewhere." he suggested. hallie groaned.

"we've been driving all day, walker. i don't wanna get back in the car." she whined. walker chuckled and kissed her.

"i'll go get something and bring it back here. how about you unpack your stuff?" he asked. hallie nodded and they kissed goodbye. walker stopped in front of the door, looking down at his bag. he had some sort of gut feeling, so he reached down and took the box out of his back, shoving it in his pocket. he went out to his truck and started it, driving off. he opened his phone, calling his mom.

as soon as it picked up, he couldn't stop talking.

"mom, i'm scared. i can't even be ten feet away from the ring, what if she finds out?? i want this to be perfect for her. shit, are you guys still coming tomorrow? mom, please don't tell me you-"

"walker!" heather yelled. walker shut up, listening to his mom. "you're fine. she doesn't suspect anything. ruby told her we were coming tuesday. everything is going to plan. i know you're nervous, honey, but it's going to be okay. anything you do is enough for her."

walker sighed, resting his head back in his seat.

"thank you, mom." he said, a smile on his face.

"you're welcome. i love you."

"i love you too."

they hung up right as walker pulled into the mcdonald's. it was the closest place to them, and he wanted to get back to his girl as quick as he could.

he ordered a list of food, piling it up in his passenger seat before he went back home. he parked in the driveway, seeing hallie standing outside, wiping her eyes. he got out quickly, speed walking over to her.

"what happened, hallie?" he asked, wrapping his arms.

"there was a rat in the garage!!" she yelled, walker couldn't help but laugh. hallie swatted at his arm.

"you don't need to cry, honey. i'll go get it." he said. "after we bring this food it. it was almost fourty dollars. we are NOT letting it get cold."

**

tomorrow came sooner than walker could've ever expected. he was a nervous wreck all morning, but he tried to be nonchalant.

he was already awake when hallie walked downstairs. a smile formed on his face when his tired girl flopped down in his lap. she laid down, yawning.

"why weren't you in bed?" she asked.

'i couldn't sleep because i'm proposing today',  he wished he could say.

"i just woke up early and couldn't go back to sleep." he said, laying his head on hers. "happy anniversary, honey." he kissed her head, hugging her gently.

"happy anniversary," she whispered, snuggling into him. they laid there for a while, until walker decided it was time to get up and moving.

"hey, hal." he said.

"hm?"

"you need to go get ready."

"for what?"

"i planned a date for us."

hallie sat up immediately.

"and you're telling me now?! what the hell!!" she glared at him before she got up, running upstairs.  walker yelled a 'wait' and chased after her.

"i have an outfit for you!" he yelled, following her into the bathroom. hallie was shoving her curling iron cord into the outlet, rushing to get ready.

"why do you have an outfit for me?" she asked.

"um." walker hesitated. "i-i knew it was gonna be a surprise so i didn't know if you packed anything- and it matches with my outfit."

hallie smiled and began curling her hair.

**

"this place is beautiful." hallie said, looking around her. the garden they were in was full of pastel flowers and bright trees.

"i know," walker said, kissing her hand. they walked through the garden, pointing out every single time they saw a butterfly. they crossed over a bridge, opening up a whole new section.

"oh my god- get back!" hallie whisper-yelled. she pushed him back to where they were hiding behind a tree. "there's a proposal going on!"

"hallie-"

"shut up!" she scolded. "we are not messing up these people's proposal!"

walker grabbed both her hands, gently pulling her out from behind the tree.

"walker- what are you-" her face contorted into a look of realization. "OH MY GOD!" she yelled, looking at him with wide eyes. "walker!!!"

walker stopped them in front of the big sign stating 'will you marry me?'.

hallie covered her mouth, trying to stop herself from crying. walker moved her hands from her face, holding them tight in his.

"hallie, you're my best friend. i've spent almost every day with you since we were little. i can't imagine growing up with anyone else, and continuing to grow old with. i want to keep growing with you."

walker got down on his knee, pulling the small black box out of his pocket.

"will you marry me?"

hallie dropped to her knees in front of him, throwing her arms around him.

"yes!! yes, yes, yes!!"

they hugged each other as tightly as they could. walker picked her up, spinning her around and setting her down. he slipped the beautiful ring onto her finger.

the sound of a group cheering echoed throughout the garden. they turned around and found their family hiding behind the bushes, now peeking out and walking to them. hallie cried as she ran to her mom.

"mommy, i'm getting married!!" she screamed, throwing herself into her mom's arms. her mom was also crying, partially for the same reason. they held each other for a while, before her mom let go. she wiped her daughters tears, holding her face.

"i wish that your dad could've been here to see this." she said. hallie leaned into her mom's hands.

"me too, mom. me too." she replied. they hugged each other once again before they turned back to the big group. she ran back to her now fiancé, hugging him once again. walker kissed her, wrapping his arms around her.

"let me see it!!" leena yelled, running to her soon-to-be sister in law. hallie held up her hand, letting her look.

"i helped pick this out!" leena boasted. heather was in awe over the beauty of the ring.

"it's beautiful, hallie!" she said. walker smiled proudly as he held his fiancé in his arms.

this was now forever.

****

RAHHHHH ITS DONE. DONE DONE DONE.

i've completely forgotten if i've ever mentioned hallie's dad, but let's say he's passed. anyways it's over and im gonna go cry now.

this has been really fun,, especially as i've never really written a book. (minus the imagines book) thank you guys for your overwhelming support!!!

i love yall 🩷